Vermont labor board says state must end return-to-office requirement for employees
The board said in its decision that the state has “refused to bargain in good faith and interfered with employees’ exercise of rights” in requiring in-person work.
Vermont Journalism Trust, VTDigger Guild reach second collective bargaining agreement
The contract raises minimum salaries by more than 30%
Whiskey mogul plans to donate Poultney college campus to a Christian group to ‘revive Western Civilization’
Poultney residents have shifted focus to investments in outdoor recreation, tourism and other revitalization efforts after the Green Mountain College campus redevelopment stalled.
Vermont lawmakers plan for the death of the penny
Also in Final Reading: Doctor shortage, economic development and pre-K.
Hinesburg bridges beset by FEMA fund shortfall
The town has attached a cost estimate of nearly $1.6 million for the two bridges and culvert.
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Vermont House advances property tax bill with 7% average increase
The legislation uses surplus General Fund money to buy down rates this fiscal year and the next. The governor wants to use all of the surplus this year to contain education property tax rates still further.
Vermont lawmakers don’t plan on pushing policy to reduce emissions this year
Vermont could face a lawsuit if it doesn’t get on track to meet its emission reduction targets. But Democrat lawmakers won’t push ambitious legislation this year, anticipating a veto from the governor.
Vermont Conversation: Freed for now from ICE detention, Minister Steven Tendo on being a beacon of hope
Tendo, a Ugandan torture survivor and asylum seeker, said that the support he has received from Vermonters throughout his ordeal “means a lot to me, and it sends a message to ICE that I am not a criminal.”
ICE took the wrong people — and got called on it. A reckoning may be coming.
Vermont may now be at the forefront of addressing the question of whether ICE’s tactics violate the U.S. Constitution.
Vermont defends its law to make fossil fuel companies pay for climate change against the Trump admin’s challenge
Vermont wants to make fossil fuel companies pay for their role in climate change in a first-of-its-kind law. The federal government says Vermont’s law is unconstitutional.
Bernie Sanders and Greg Casar want to keep sports teams in their home communities
They announced a bill that aims to keep professional sports franchises in their local communities.
Opinion
Commentaries and letters to the editor written by community members and regular contributors.
Mohamed Jafar: Immigrants are shaping Vermont’s health care. We belong here.
Spaces that intentionally include immigrant perspectives build stronger, healthier communities — and Vermont’s health care system is starting to prove it.
Nora Jacobson: It’s not the media’s job to decide who’s Abenaki
By sidelining Vermont Abenaki voices, Vermont Public risks crossing the line from reporting the news to defining it.
Jonathan Leibowitz: Vermont’s forests are wildly out of balance
Vermont has conserved 25 percent of its land — but less than 3.5 percent is truly wild. That gap matters more than most of us realize.
Ben Huffman: Vermont tried a land-use map in 1970. The legislature killed it.
Act 181’s mapping effort isn’t new — Vermont attempted the same thing in 1970, and it failed.
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Vermont House passes state budget bill with disaster aid for the Northeast Kingdom
The $9.3 billion spending plan now heads to the Senate with more debate to come over how much money lawmakers should direct to “buy down” property tax rates.
2 men incarcerated in Vermont die
Jose Luis Gonzalez and Jonathan Stone died in separate hospitals days apart.
State designates Samuel Morey Elementary School as low-performing
Morey is not meeting state standards and is showing continued decline, the state report card says.
Obituaries
Death notices and celebrations of life.
Some kids with autism are losing therapy services after a Medicaid change reduces clinics’ revenue
The state says the changes are essential to keep its health coverage program compliant with federal rules. Clinics say it’s a fundamental threat to their ability to operate.
